Miniature Work Knives in Sheath
Kongo / Hungaan / Yanzi, D.R.Congo / Angola
Iron, wood, leather
1850 - 1920

This knife type was primarily found among the Hungaan, but also in a broad region stretching from the coastal areas of southwestern D.R. Congo to northwestern Angola. Putting multiple blades into one sheath seems to be a unique phenomenon of western D.R. Congo. European knives and razors replaced objects like this early on because of their superior cutting edges, and as such, knives of this type are typically old and rare. 

The Hungaan number only 5,000 and are a matrilineal culture headed by a leme, the oldest male in the lineage. The leme guarded the lineage symbols, which included bracelts, bags, and pots. It is the chief's obligation to render justice and guard the ancestors' skulls, which are kept on a platform (Felix, 100 Peoples of Zaire and Their Sculpture: The Handbook. 1987; Felix, Fatal Beauty: Traditional Weapons from Central Africa, 2009; Westerdijk, Ijzerwerk van Centraal-Afrika, 1975).

Ex. Raoul Lehuard & Alain Lecomte, Paris. 

9 in :: 23 cm

InventoryID #13-1798

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